P.S Apologies, was typing my thoughts at 2:50am and just realised that some sentences read funny.... On Sun, Nov 10, 2013 at 2:48 AM, Salanieta T. Tamanikaiwaimaro < salanieta.tamanikaiwaimaro@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear Jean-Jacques,
I am glad to be of service. Personally I feel that the Surveillance Debate that happened in the European Parliament over the study is different. The Hearing was mainly to look at whether the countries mentioned had violated EU law and relevant instruments and to see whether the study and its recommendations were of any value.
The context of the Press Release by the US State Department shows that US cannot vote in the UNESCO. Their not being able to vote unfortunately was due to statutory restrictions which they are attempting to fix. At this critical juncture in Internet Governance, UNESCO plays a critical role in Internet Governance amongst other things. The loss of the vote is unfortunate and it would mean that when it comes to voting on critical matters, the US will have to rely on its allies. In this instance with the recent revelations on surveillance we are watching a change from the usual BRIC v US on the issue of surveillance to other traditional alliances such as France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands etc who are not happy with the "surveillance". Last time I checked 87 countries signed the Seoul Framework on Cyber Security.
When Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel who made open calls for Europe to re-examine its cooperation with US Intelligence signals a breach of trust. The fact that Angela Merkel has been touted the de facto leader of the European Union with Germany shouldering and providing the much needed stability to ease the stress on financially economies in Europe coupled with her being former President of the European Council and Chair of G8 places her in a very key position of power and influence in this time. Dev shared a piece of news on skype that Europe was considering building a pan-European equivalent of the NSA. (war begets war -what a messed up world!)
This of course does not discount the G90 who met in Fiji recently. The chair is from Fiji, I think unless it has lapsed. Given the current deals across the tables between the EU and G90 who knows what the tradeoffs would be for certain decisions. We are in significant times and I doubt much will happen as there are too many other pressing matters that countries have to prioritise such as Super Typhoon which devastated Philippinnes and Palau. Not to mention the global food, water, energy crisis that is causing the price of bread to rise and shortage in Eastern Europe, Middle East.
But I still think that it is a significant piece of news that affects the current chess pieces on the board.
Kind Regards, Sala
On Sun, Nov 10, 2013 at 2:01 AM, Jean-Jacques Subrenat <jjs@dyalog.net>wrote:
Dear Salanieta, thank you for forwarding this. Well, every country has its own priorities. From the point of view of the surveillance agencies in the country you mentioned, and in the UK, making the "war against terror" as the lodestone of public policy is probably a smart choice, as their budgets have increased by orders of magnitude. Viewed in this specialized light, culture, rights and education must seem like things for sissies. The initiative taken by Viviane Reding, vice-president of the European Commission, which you pointed out a few days ago, shows that the priorities of the EU are somewhat different from those which led to the US losing its voting rights in UNESCO. JJ.
----- Mail original ----- De: "Salanieta T. Tamanikaiwaimaro" <salanieta.tamanikaiwaimaro@gmail.com
À: "apralo" <apac-discuss@atlarge-lists.icann.org>, "At-Large Worldwide" <at-large@atlarge-lists.icann.org>, "ALAC Internal List" < alac-internal@atlarge-lists.icann.org> Envoyé: Samedi 9 Novembre 2013 12:13:42 Objet: [ALAC-Internal] US loses its vote in UNESCO
Dear All,
The US just lost its vote in UNESCO. For details see the Press Statement released by the US Government today:
Dear All,
The US just lost its vote in UNESCO. See the Statement released by the US Gov:
U.S. Mission to the United Nations: Statement on the Loss of U.S. Vote at UNESCO <http://usun.state.gov/briefing/statements/217394.htm> 11/08/2013 08:54 PM EST
------------------------------
AS DELIVERED
Today the United States lost its vote in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) General Conference as a result of legislative restrictions that prohibit the U.S. from paying its dues. While these restrictions are motivated by concerns that we share, the loss of the United States' vote in UNESCO diminishes our influence within an organization that is looked to around the world for leadership on issues of importance to our country, including the rights of women and girls, Internet governance, freedom of the press, and the recognition and protection of cultural heritage. The Obama Administration has called upon Congress to approve legislative changes that would allow needed flexibility in the application of these statutory restrictions.
U.S. leadership in UNESCO matters. As such, the United States will remain engaged with the organization in every possible capacity, including attending meetings, participating in debates, and maintaining our seat as an elected member of the Executive Board until 2015. _______________________________________________ ALAC-Internal mailing list ALAC-Internal@atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/alac-internal
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